


Child's Play

by Black_Rabbit13



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: FFXV AU, Kid Fic, ffxv holiday exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 07:27:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17117027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Black_Rabbit13/pseuds/Black_Rabbit13
Summary: With no sitter for three year old Iris, Clarus is at loss. Jared is away at a wedding and He's required to be with Regis for a Council meeting. With no other options left, Clarus leaves the four boys in charge of watching Iris for the afternoon.





	Child's Play

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NekoAisu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoAisu/gifts).



> This is for the FFXV Holiday Exchange. To NekoAisu, I went with your first request for the kid fic. Happy Holidays!

A typical afternoon for Regis, after returning from yet another council meeting that ended with nothing truly being settled, included going over the messages his secretary had left from the various people in need of his attention, reviewing documents and signing the ones not asking him to all but give his consent to have his son married to one of their daughters one day, and making sure that he would have no pending task that would interfere with him spending time with his child over the weekend. Granted, sometimes issues arise out of his general schedule that he must attend to, regrettably leaving him unable to even wish Noctis a good night in some cases.

One such meeting was taking place today, leaving Regis to attend with several of his councilmen in attendance. Thankfully, once he could adjourn from the council room, he would be free to a long weekend with his son without any distraction.

Which was why when he opened the door to his office, inwardly grateful to finally let go of his Kingly persona so that he could try to catch a brief nap before he had to get ready for the meeting, that he was surprised to see said Shield hanging up his phone accompanied by a deep sigh.  
“It’s been a while since I’ve heard you give out that deep of sigh” commented Regis as he closed the door “Has Cor gotten himself into trouble again?”

  
“Thankfully not,” said Clarus as he raised his head “However, I still have a bit of an issue at hand. Iris’s Nanny won’t be able to watch her this afternoon, she’s home with the flu. Normally Jared could keep an eye on her for a few hours, but he’s away for a family wedding and won’t be returning for two days. I don’t have anyone else I could call on such short notice, but with the board meeting today it’s not as if I could just watch her either.”

  
Normally Clarus’s attendance wasn’t needed for meetings, leaving his Shield to see to other matters (making sure a certain Marshall wasn’t picking fights with those who caused his son to cry a top priority) or for the shield to spend time with his own children. But with one of the topics covering the protection of the Citadel, the council had requested the Shield’s presence alongside that of the Crownsguard Marshall and Kingsglaive Captain.  
“This is a problem” agreed Regis “I’d offer for her to stay here, but with both Gladiolus and Ignis by Noctis’s side after their lessons, I’ve only been having the staff occasionally check in on them while they stay in the Nursey. “

  
While called such, the room had been updated to a sort of playroom for the young prince as he had graduated to using a bigger bed the last previous years. Noctis was known to spend his time there, outside training and small walks in the garden. Regis still thanked the Gods for allowing Noctis to still be able to walk after the attack, the damage not as horrible as it could have been due to Regis listening to Clarus and bringing the extra guard in addition to Cor.

  
“And Cor has just been dropping Prompto off after his classes. I don’t think he’s had a sitter in weeks” stated Clarus.

  
Though neither man blamed him after the incident a few months ago where Cor had found out that Prompto had been getting bullied due to his size. It had been going on for a few weeks before Ignis and Gladiolus had overheard one of the young bullies and had gotten the young blonde to tell them the full story. Cor had not been amused over the school’s ignorance on the matter, pulling his son from the school and transferring him into the same school the other boys had been attending. While angry on his Friend’s behalf, Noctis had been thrilled to have his best friend beside him every day instead of only seeing him every other day depending on the lessons.

  
As the two Fathers tried to put their heads together for a plan, a knock echoed into the room breaking them from their thoughts.

  
“Dad?” came the familiar voice of the young Prince.

  
“Yes Noctis, you may come in” said Regis as he turned to greet his young son, Gladiolus, Ignis, and Prompto entering behind him.

  
“One of Gladio’s maids is with Iris in the Nursey,” said Noctis “We’re not keeping her, are we?”

  
“Of course not Noctis” chuckled Regis “Iris is just visiting for the day since her nanny can’t watch her.”

  
“Is Miss Helen okay Dad?” asked Gladio, the young ten-year-old fond of the woman who watched his sister

  
“She’ll be fine Gladio” assured Clarus “She’s just caught a flu bug. Miss Duvius will be back in a few days. It just means that we need to find someone to watch Iris for today”

  
“Why not just let us do it?” asked Gladio “We’re just going to be in the same room we always are, and the maids are going to be checking in if we do need something”

  
“Toddlers are a big responsibility Gladio” spoke Clarus sternly “You have to keep a constant eye on her and make sure she doesn’t get into any trouble.”

  
“Forgive me for interrupting Lord Amicita, but isn’t Gladiolus training to be Prince Noctis’s shield in the future?” spoke Ignis as he came forward “If his little sister is too much of responsibility to him, then what category does the prince fall under that he’s classified for the Prince’s protection?”

  
Clarus and Regis were impressed by the mild argument, as they always were when the Prince’s budding Advisor showed a brief glimpse to the Strategist, he would one day grow into. It did little to ease their concern at leaving the four boys to care for the small Toddler.

  
“Miss Helen lets us help take care of Iris when we go over to Gladio’s house.” said Noctis “And Iris mostly just naps with me after playing”

  
“She’s usually eaten by now, so she’ll probably be asleep in an hour or two” added Prompto shyly

  
Glancing at the four determined boys, and then to each other in silent communication, Regis and Clarus were left with little choice but to agree. However, they were instructing the staff to check in a bit more frequently to make sure nothing would go amiss, making the boys Promise they would get the nearest adult if anything would happen.

  
All four boys promised, throwing in salutes from the Crownsguard for good measure, before running off to play. King and Shield left to get ready for the meeting and ignore their apprehension over the matter.

 

***********

  
“That meeting couldn’t have gone on longer if they tried and I honestly think they were just stretching that out for no reason” grumbled Clarus as he and his King walked away from the Council room

  
“I’m inclined to agree with you” sighed Regis, his cane getting more use in from the long day of walking halls for meetings “Especially since no less than three of them were inquiring after Betrothal contracts and what my plans were for the Crown in the future. Noctis is not even interested in anyone outside his friends and Lady Lunafreya at this point in his age.”

  
“I’m not looking forward to that in a few years,” said Clarus. With the Amicita family tied to the Crown as their Shields, the Family line was kept in working order to ensure strong heirs and stronger Shields in which to protect the Royal Family. “At least with Iris, I’ll only have to worry about a suitable match”

  
“I can only hope that when Noctis is at that age, he won’t have gone through the same rebellious phase I did,” said Regis, recalling some of the antics he had gotten into during his adolescence

  
“As long as they don’t go through the phase Cor was in before the Trial, I can handle anything else” spoke Clarus, shuddering as he recalled his young friend’s adolescence years and praying Gladio never went through even a fraction of Cor’s teenage years.

  
“Cor said he would be by to get Prompto in a few minutes” stated Regis “Seeing as how we weren’t pulled from the meeting, I’m guessing nothing too bad occurred”

  
“I wasn’t certain leaving them to watch Iris alone was the best idea, regardless of it being the only thing I could do at the time” replied Clarus “Even with young Scientia’s argument”

  
“He will grow to be a good Advisor to Noctis” expressed Regis “Just as in time Noctis and Gladio will grow to be a good King and Shield. And Prompto into a good man. This is merely a stepping stone for them to reach”

  
“I suppose you’re right, Your Majesty” agreed Clarus, smiling as his King gave a small huff at the use of his Title.

  
Soon both men were in front of the Nursey, easing the door open to peer inside and to retrieve the children.

  
A board game was left abandoned halfway through, pieces scattered throughout the room. The television was playing some type of child special with Kenny the Crow and his Moogle friends, the characters dancing around the screen. A small nest of blankets and pillows were situated in front of the device, though most of the occupants were asleep.

  
Stuck in the middle between his sister and his Prince, Gladiolus was flat on his back with a single pillow under his head, a low rumbling snore coming from him as he breathed. Iris was curled into her Brother's left side, her small hand resting on his stomach, while Noctis was turned to have his back rest again the Shield’s right side, resting his head against the older boy’s arm. Prompto was half buried under blankets, looking like a baby Chocobo chick dozing in its nest. Both Noctis and Prompto had their pinkies locked together as though they fell asleep completing a promise.

  
Young Ignis as laying against a pile of pillows, quietly reading while the remaining residents slumbered onwards.

  
Upon hearing the door open, Ignis looked up, standing to give a bow once he saw who was entering the room.

  
“Your Majesty, Lord Amicita. How was the meeting?” inquired Ignis as the two adults walked inside

  
“Long and tiring,” Regis said with a sigh, though he gave the young Scientia a smile “Though it looks like you’ve also had a long afternoon.”

  
“It didn’t start out the way we had planned, but things came together in the end,” Ignis said, pleased with the diplomatic answer.

  
He didn’t think it would be to their benefit to tell of the fight over pieces and the accusation from both Gladio and Noctis over cheating to get ahead. About how one of them threw the first punch and the other tackled him right back to start a tumble of pulling clothes and mean words. Iris starting to cry over the angry emotions being sent through the room while Ignis tries to calm the Prince and his Shield down.

  
Prompto, initially withdrawn from the whole thing, stepped forward to push Gladio and Noctis away from each other and put his foot down. The younger blonde went on to lecture them both about making Iris cry and dragging Ignis into the mess just because “Iggy’s too nice to let you both be Stupid Meany Heads to each other”. Ignis took note he failed to go over his own feelings over the matter in typical Prompto fashion. Ignis made a mental note to make sure his younger friend was okay later.

  
Prompto then directed the two boys to make a pile with the blankets and pillows tucked away for nap times, while he enlisted Ignis’s help with calming Iris down and drawing her into watching one of her favorite shows. Noctis and Gladio uninterested in the little kid’s show, but unwilling to upset iris again, or draw the other two’s ire, relaxed back into comfortable positions to get through the next few hours before their fathers would return. Halfway through the second episode they all fell asleep, Iris for an overdue nap and the boys from the argument and the calm blanket nest they had pulled together.

  
Once Ignis had noticed that he was the only one awake, he carefully extracted himself from his position near Gladio’s feet and went to retrieve a few pillows and a book while he settled down to wait for the King and his Shield’s return.

  
“I see.” Smiled Clarus, aware something had happened, but deciding that the answer didn’t need to be given right now. “Then I must say I’m very impressed you boys were able to watch her so well. I may need to speak with Miss Duvius about letting you four be the backup plan in these situations”

  
“I assure you we were happy to be of assistance, Lord Amicita” bowed Ignis “I’m sure everyone would be amendable to watch Iris again if the need arose.”

  
“And I can’t think of who better to watch her then you boys,” said Clarus as he gave a firm pat to Ignis’s shoulder.

  
Those words continued to be true for years. Even as Iris grew from a little girl to a strong young woman. Even though she had been trained similarly as her brother and was more than capable of handling her own battles. Clarus was always more at ease when he knew that Iris was in the presence of Gladio, Noctis, Ignis, and Prompto, all of whom took Iris’s wellbeing as seriously as they had done the first time, they watched her. All of them willing to step in front of her, not to shield her from something she couldn’t fight, but to not let her fight it all alone.

Clarus was proud of the King, Shield, Advisor, and Gunner all four young men were growing up to be and while that afternoon did not play a large part in shaping them, he was glad it contributed some part in making them who they would be.


End file.
